Associated Press
NEW YORK — The embattled top uniformed officer in the New York City Department of Correction announced Monday that he will retire on Dec. 1.
Chief of Department William Clemmons told The Associated Press Monday that he was not asked to resign. He declined further comment.
Clemmons almost immediately came under scrutiny following his May promotion by jails Commissioner Joseph Ponte.
Clemmons was one of two supervisors in 2012 who omitted hundreds of inmate fights from statistics turned over to federal authorities investigating violence on Rikers Island.
Lawmakers were outraged when he didn’t attend an Oct. 8 oversight hearing. He was on vacation.
One lawmaker told Ponte that Clemmons’ promotion didn’t instill confidence in change.
In a statement, Ponte said Clemmons was an able leader who helped institute reforms. He called him “a model of stability in a tumultuous time.”